White House declines comment on petition to deport Justin Bieber

White House declines comment on petition to deport Justin Bieber

WASHINGTON (CNN) — The White House has declined to comment on a “Deport Justin Bieber and revoke his green card” petition, saying the “We the People” Whitehouse.gov petition system allows the Executive Office to dodge comments “to avoid the appearance of improper influence.”

Although the official response posted on Friday did not address the petition’s position directly, the White House did drop a few Bieber references, while making its case for the President’s immigration plan.

“Not only is it (immigration reform) the right thing to do morally, it’s the right thing for our country,” the response says. “Independent economists say immigration reform will grow our economy and shrink our deficits by almost $1 trillion in the next 20 years. For those of you counting at home, that’s 12.5 billion concert tickets — or 100 billion copies of Mr. Bieber’s debut album.”

More than 273,000 people signed the petition, which calls for Canadian pop star to be deported because of his representation in the world of pop culture.

“We would like to see the dangerous, reckless, destructive, and drug abusing Justin Bieber removed from society and his green card revoked,” the petition says. “He is not only threatening the safety of our people but he is also a terrible influence on our nation’s youth.”

The original petition, filed January 23 through the “We the People” petition system, merited a response from the White House after receiving more than 100,000 signatures within 30 days, per the system’s terms of participation.

When asked about the petition January 29, State Department spokeswoman Jen Psaki said the petition program doesn’t necessarily mean action would be taken but it’s rather “an opportunity for the voices of the American people” to be heard.